Dutch policemen stand guard by a cordoned off area outside Amsterdam's
Schiphol Airport late on April 12, 2016, after it was partially
evacuated following a security alert, and a person was one arrested,
according to official sources. AFP PHOTO
SCHIPHOL
Dozens of
heavily-armed military police swooped on Amsterdam's Schiphol airport
late Tuesday, evacuating part of the busy travel hub and arresting one
man, triggering a four-hour security alert.
The
incident came as the Netherlands has been on high guard following the
March 22 attack on the Brussels airport and metro in which 32 people
were killed.
"Police have evacuated part of the airport
plaza and the adjacent Sheraton Hotel and arrested one person amid a
suspicious situation," airport spokeswoman Danielle Timmer told AFP.
AFP
reporters saw heavily armed Dutch special military police, wearing
balaclavas, patrolling the airport while passengers anxiously watched
from behind security tape.
Part of the airport was
cordoned off for about four hours while a helicopter hovered overhead,
until the alert was lifted at around 1:30 am (2330 GMT).
It
remained unclear exactly what had triggered concerns, or who had been
arrested, but the Dutch news agency said nothing dangerous had been
found in a search of the arrested man's luggage.
Military
police spokesman Alfred Ellwanger told AFP that "around 9:45 pm a man
was arrested on the square in front of the main entrance to the
airport's plaza".
No flights were disrupted and trains
continued arriving as normal at the underground station, which links the
huge travel hub to the rest of the Netherlands.
"Nobody
is telling us anything about what's going on. My car is in the parking
garage and I can't get it out. I'm a diabetic and I need my insulin,"
said a 72-year-old Dutchman.
Schiphol, which lies about
16 kilometres (10 miles) southwest of central Amsterdam, is one of
Europe's busiest travel hubs with about 50 million visitors passing
through each year.
"Part of Schiphol is not accessible
due to an incident. Police is investigating the matter. For now, air
traffic has not been affected," the airport said on its official Twitter
account.
A spokesperson for the 407-room Sheraton
hotel, which is linked to the airport via a covered walkway, reached by
AFP declined to comment.
ISLAMIC STATE
Schiphol's
busy modern plaza and entrance is usually crowded with passengers and
visitors, many of them enjoying a meal at one of the eateries or
perusing the shops.
Tensions have been high since last
month's attacks in neighbouring Belgium, which like the November attacks
in Paris, were claimed by the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group.
One
person was also arrested at the nearby Leiden railway station for
raising a "false alarm", a spokeswoman for The Hague police told AFP.
Another person was arrested at Schiphol, but unrelated to the incident, police said.
There
has been concern in the Netherlands about whether it could potentially
be targeted in a terror attack, due to its proximity to both Belgium and
France.
As a precaution, the government stepped up
security at national airports and train stations and tightened controls
on its southern border with Belgium.
Dutch police
carried out raids in Rotterdam last month, uncovering about 45 kilos (99
pounds) of ammunition in one apartment linked to a foiled attack on
France.
French suspect Anis Bahri was arrested at the
flat in the southern port on March 27 at Paris' request, amid suspicions
he was planning an attack in France for the Islamic State group.
He
is fighting his extradition to Paris, where he is wanted on suspicion
of plotting the foiled attack with another man, Reda Kriket.
Two Algerians arrested with Bahri have been remanded in custody in the Netherlands.
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